Restaurateurs agree to settle federal suit from Lexington waitress

Friday

Jul 12, 2013 at 9:22 AM

A group of Winston-Salem restaurateurs has agreed to pay $25,000 to settle a federal lawsuit alleging that one of them sexually harassed a waitress and later fired her in retaliation when she complained about it, according to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

BY BERTRAND M. GUTIERREZWinston-Salem Journal

A group of Winston-Salem restaurateurs has agreed to pay $25,000 to settle a federal lawsuit alleging that one of them sexually harassed a waitress and later fired her in retaliation when she complained about it, according to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.The settlement does not come with an admission of guilt.The Silver Diner in Lexington, which is changing its name to Lexington Diner, was the site of the alleged sexual harassment. The restaurant's principal officers are Chris Katsoudas, Pete Katsoudas, Gus John Balourdos, Ioannis Balourdos and John Papanikolaou, all of Winston-Salem, according to corporation filings with the N.C. Secretary of State.Laura Thompson, a waitress, suffered a sexually hostile work environment at the restaurant from around June until October 2010 under one of the restaurant's co-owners, who was also her supervisor, according to the EEOC.The harassment included, among other things, "comments about Thompson's appearance; rubbing up against her while she was at work; telling her to get rid of her boyfriend if she wanted to advance at work; and grabbing her," according to the EEOC.The federal agency did not name the restaurant principal; Gus John Balourdos said in an interview that the allegations targeted Papanikolaou.Papanikolaou, who declined to comment about the allegations, said that the lawsuit "should not have been disclosed.""I cannot discuss any of that with you because that is all from her side," he said.Ken McAllister, a High Point lawyer representing the restaurant, said that the owners "categorically denied any wrongdoing and liability" in the settlement, and he stressed that the cost of continuing the lawsuit would far exceed the cost of settling.Thompson, according to the EEOC, told the head waitress and other restaurant owners about the alleged harassment. Afterward, the company reduced Thompson's hours, according to the EEOC.In late October 2010, the sexual advances and comments toward Thompson had ceased, according to the EEOC. By the end of the year, Thompson was working the fewest hours among other servers at the restaurant.On Feb. 14, 2011, when Thompson complained a final time about the reduction of work hours, the company fired her in retaliation for her complaints, according to the EEOC.Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits sexual harassment in the workplace and retaliation for complaining about discrimination.The EEOC, after unsuccessfully trying to reach a settlement, filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina — known as Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Silver Diner Inc.In addition to agreeing to pay the $25,000, the company agreed to conduct for five years annual training for all its employees, supervisors and managers covering sexual harassment and retaliation. And the company will adopt an anti-harassment policy.Sexual harassment should not be taken lightly, said Lynette Barnes, regional attorney for the EEOC's Charlotte District Office."The EEOC's filing this case is a reminder that employers have an obligation under federal law to ensure a work environment free from harassment, to promptly investigate complaints and to take appropriate corrective measures to stop sexual harassment, regardless of who the harasser is," she said.